TY - JOUR T1 - Transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease to a chimpanzee by electrodes contaminated during neurosurgery. JF - Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry JO - J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry SP - 757 LP - 758 DO - 10.1136/jnnp.57.6.757 VL - 57 IS - 6 AU - C J Gibbs, Jr AU - D M Asher AU - A Kobrine AU - H L Amyx AU - M P Sulima AU - D C Gajdusek Y1 - 1994/06/01 UR - http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/57/6/757.abstract N2 - Stereotactic multicontact electrodes used to probe the cerebral cortex of a middle aged woman with progressive dementia were previously implicated in the accidental transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) to two younger patients. The diagnoses of CJD have been confirmed for all three cases. More than two years after their last use in humans, after three cleanings and repeated sterilisation in ethanol and formaldehyde vapour, the electrodes were implanted in the cortex of a chimpanzee. Eighteen months later the animal became ill with CJD. This finding serves to re-emphasise the potential danger posed by reuse of instruments contaminated with the agents of spongiform encephalopathies, even after scrupulous attempts to clean them. ER -